§ Mr. Fieldasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list the number of surtax payers or higher-rate taxpayers for each year since 1945; and if he will also present this data as a percentage of all taxpayers.
§ Mr. Ridley[pursuant to his reply, 26 November 1981, c. 430]: Estimates of the number of surtax payers from 1945–46 to 1972–73 and higher rate taxpayers from 1973–74, and the percentage of all personal income taxpayers that these numbers represent, are as follows:
499W
Thousands Year Number of Surtax Payers* Percentage of all Taxpayers 1945–46 163 1.1 1946–47 187 1.3 1947–48 206 1.4 1948–49 218 1.5 1949–50 230 1.5 1950–51 245 1.6 1951–52 260 1.6 1952–53 270 1.8 1953–54 288 1.8 1954–55 315 1.9 1955–56 342 2.1 1956–57 331 1.9 1957–58 360 2.1 1958–59 393 2.2 1959–60 431 2.3 1960–61 461 2.4 1961–62 285 1.4 1962–63 304 1.5 1963–64 316 1.8 1964–65 360 1.9 1965–66 420 2.2 1966–67 402 2.0 1967–68 452 2.3 1968–69 474 2.3 1969–70 375 1.8 1970–71 403 2.0 1971–72 345 1.8 1972–73 370 2.0
Year Number of Higher Rate Taxpayers Percentage of All Taxpayers 1973–74 392 2.0 1974–75 752 3.7 1975–76 1,240 5.9 1976–77 1,430 6.7 1977–78 1,060 5.1 1978–79 763 3.5 1979–80† 670 3.1 1980–81† 760 3.6 1981–82† 1,000 4.6 * Married couples counted as one. † Provisional.